Past Event

Closing day across Colorado

What ski resorts are doing to celebrate the season.

- Copper Mountain: Now in its eighth year, Copper uses two weekends of April skiing for "Sunsation," with live music by Susan Tedeschi, deSoL, Pato Banton & The Reggae Revolution, Eek-A-Mouse, George Clinton & P-Funk Allstars, Band of Heathens and Matisyahu.

- Winter Park: Winter Park does a three-part "Spring Blast": Dummy Downhill and music on March 29 and 30, a carnival-style family weekend April 6, and a 1980s-themed party April 12 and 13, with music by The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band and Great American Taxi.

- A-Basin: With a late closing date, A-Basin hosts free concerts throughout May, culminating with the seventh annual Festival of the Brewpubs and Memorial Weekend Beach Party on May 25.

- Vail: Starting the end-of-season events April 7, Vail goes through the weekend with ticketed performances by Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals, Kottonmouth Kings and Gov't Mule. They also do a pond-skimming competition.

- Aspen/Snowmass: With closing days on April 6 and 13, Aspen and Snowmass host a late-March concert series, the Bud Light Spring Jam. Featured artists include De La Soul and Ky-Mani Marley.

Steamboat Springs  Closing day is earlier, Cardboard Classic is smaller and music acts remain for the Steamboat Ski Area's final weekend of the 2007-08 season.

The first annual "Springalicious" two-day event features a "Splashdown Pond Skimming Competition" and performances by blues-guitarist Susan Tedeschi, classic rockers The Radiators and local ragers American Relay.

For the first time in 28 years, Steamboat Ski and Resort Corp. will charge an entry fee and place a limit on the number of crafts for Cardboard Classic. Competitors must pay $10 and be one of 50 teams to register on a first-come, first-served basis to stand a chance at sliding cardboard and duct-tape contraptions down the hill.

Registration opens at 8 a.m. March 31 at the Steamboat Information Center in Gondola Square. Entry fees will be donated to Yampa Valley Recycles.

"It's an opportunity for us to give to a very worthwhile local organization," said Ski Corp. spokeswoman Heidi Thomsen, adding that the entry fee and registration will make the event run smoother.

"This allows people who spent a lot of time and resources on their craft to come down and register early and get a spot. We have a lot of other things planned for the weekend, so we're just trying to keep everything on time," Thomsen said.

The Springalicious Festival debuts Splashdown, which places a pool of icy water at the base area and dares skiers and riders to cross it on their planks and boards. Entries will be limited to 75 people and cost $25. Participants will be judged for style, costume, distance and crowd reaction.

"We've seen a lot of great stuff, but we haven't seen it all," Thomsen said. "I want to see people going all out with costumes and having fun and making a great craft."

The extended music schedule and pond-skimming competition are similar to closing-weekend events at ski resorts across Colorado, including those at Intrawest-owned Copper Mountain.

Copper's "Sunsation" features music by Tedeschi, along with performances from Matisyahu, George Clinton & P-Funk Allstars and Eek-A-Mouse. The event relies heavily on Front Range visitors, said Copper Mountain Public Relations Coordinator David Roth.

"Definitely, that's one of our biggest draws for those, is the Front Range for sure," Roth said.

Thomsen said there are no firm plans for what will be included in Springalicious weekends in coming seasons.

"It's a tradition for us to do kind of a last closing weekend as a thank you to the community and season pass holders who have been out that winter and supported us," she said.

Comments

"It's a tradition for us to do kind of a last closing weekend as a THANK YOU to the community and season pass holders who have been out that winter and supported us," she ( Ski Corp spokewomen Heidi Thomsen) said.

As a THANK YOU Ski Corp will charge the participant a fee?
C'mon, give me a break!

These participants "spent a lot of time and resources on their crafts" yet Ski Corp want to charge them to enter so that Ski Corp attracts, to their benefit, Front Range crowds.

I think the fee is really only to limit how many people enter. In past years the cardboard classic has gone on for hours. It just gets old after a while, people can only stand thre so long to watch, no matter how drunk they are

That's the point they would probably like to phase out the cardboard classic. No great loss! Although I don't know why they need such a high entry fee for the pond-skimming, $5-10 would be more reasonable so you don't have have every drunk Tom, Dick and Jane making a spectacle. But wait isn't that the point? Believe!

"It's an opportunity for us to give to a very worthwhile local organization," THIS sounds a whole lot like the government they [Ski corp] think it's worthwhile but they want to give YOUR money, not theirs! What a bunch of crock, they can control entries without charging a fee. Hey working class, ante up a few more bucks and don't forget to bend over!

OTBG,
Actually to hang out anywhere on the mountain with your friends will either cost you the price of a lift ticket or $1000 divided by how many days you have skied. I don't think anything in the business world is really free.

fudjack,
That was assuming that you had already forked over your $1000 for your pass or had an employee pass... like me.
You are right, it's not free. You do have to stop off at CPL on saturday to pick up a 12 pack first!

In our ongoing effort to differentiate ourselves from other resort towns, we are having the same closing weekend events as all the other places, along with the same bands. We will also be charging more money and controlling the entrants, so that none of the rif-raff associated with the town show up on next year's marketing clips.

hey justathought..how many concerts you attend this ski season?..besides AB who do you think ponied up for the performers to come..i bet Intrawest put in their fair share..you sound very bitter..all the monies is going to a worthy cause so if you choose to participate then get a receipt so you can take it off YOUR taxes